Leveraging AI to Scale Human Connection and Creativity, with David Norris

Behind the Episode
Written By Tom Lietz

In this episode of Storylinking, David Norris offered a really hopeful perspective about how technology can help us to build a more human-centered future. Dave is a musician, developer, former agency principal, and creator. We discussed the rapid change we’re seeing specifically relative to generative AI, and the potential of this evolving toolset to have a positive impact on our communities. He shared some great examples of how this can happen based on current projects that boost creative accessibility and encourage more connected community. Beyond AI, we discussed the critical need for each one of us to engage with the ongoing cycle of choice and change that our society experiences, so that we have the best opportunities to lead our organizations and communities toward a thriving future.

“While there’s all these changes around you, there’s the patterns remain the same. I do think that as creators, if we’re able to take these modern tools and apply them rather than be kind of afraid of them and remain stagnant, and if we do so with the idea that the intent is to create meaningful connection between people (real people) that’s always going to win.”
— David Norris

Working in the creative industry, the rise of generative AI feels both thrilling and daunting. This period of rapid disruption is opening exciting new doors while also surfacing complex challenges that demand thoughtful consideration. In conversations with colleagues and clients, I hear us all wrestling with big questions, like:

  • How will these tools reshape the value and role of human creative professionals?

  • What data is used to train generative AI systems, and where does it come from?

  • Have the authors of that data opted in and been fairly compensated?

  • Who owns the intellectual property of content created using these tools?

  • What biases are baked into AI outputs, and how can we address them?

  • How can we reduce the environmental impact of the significant energy demands of generative AI?

  • Where can new ways of working help us better connect people and tackle our toughest challenges?

These questions don’t have simple answers, and they won’t be resolved overnight. This makes now an important time for thoughtful experimentation and ongoing dialogue. It’s tempting to wait for a new status quo to emerge, but doing so risks leaving this critical conversation and associated decisions to others who may or may not represent the interests of the people we serve.

As Dave pointed out in our interview, we’ve seen this kind of disruption before, and come out on the other side. While the impact of generative AI is undeniably unique in its scope, creative storytellers and community builders have weathered many waves of change. Think about the transition to the web, then web 2.0, or the rise of social media platforms. Consider how tools like DV cameras and iPhones democratized storytelling by drastically lowering the barriers to creating high-quality video. Each shift brought uncertainty, displaced established norms, and eventually created new opportunities for those willing to adapt.

So where are those opportunities today?

Considering generative AI as a creative lever

Early in this episode, Dave shared the story of his recent independent project: a full album of music created with the help of the generative AI tool Suno.AI. Using Suno, he uploaded his written lyrics, hummed melodies, and collaborated extensively with the AI to develop complete songs. Through countless iterations, refinements, and adjustments, Dave crafted an album that he admits he probably never would have made without the leverage provided by these tools.

"At first, I felt like it was cheating,” Dave says, “but I realized that the only way I arrived at that output was through my lyrics, my prompt, and my configuration."

For Dave, access to generative AI tools didn’t replace his creativity, it expanded it. Despite his training as an audio engineer and experience as a drummer, the demands of life made a traditional approach to such a project impractical. Tools like Suno.AI bridged the gap between inspiration and execution, allowing him to pursue creative expression without losing the joy of making something uniquely his own.

I deeply value the hands-on process of creativity—whether it’s sketching with a pencil or assembling a structural edit of a storytelling video. There’s joy in the tactile, focused work that brings ideas to life. But creativity is often limited by clunky workflows or inefficient tools, which can drain time and energy. As creative professionals, our resilience in navigating these challenges is important, but so is the ability of our work to efficiently support strategic outcomes.

When leading an organization or community, balanced efficiency is not a luxury, it’s a necessity. By thoughtfully leveraging tools that increase productivity (including those that are built on generative AI) we have the opportunity to allocate our limited resources (time, money, or otherwise) more effectively. This doesn’t have to diminish the creative process; it just gives us the best chance of achieving sustainable results for our stakeholders and communities, ensuring our work can deliver its intended impact.

Enhancing human connection

That being said, the full potential of generative AI or any technological goes beyond simple efficiency. It’s about what we can do with it, in order to benefit the people around us.

“ The vision that I have for online experiences is, is best described as a natural user interface,” says Dave. In a recent project, he brought this approach to life while helping a relatively small nonprofit team scale their reach with a human-like chat agent. He developed a community-facing front end and connected it to a rich library of information and resources. The system allows users to ask questions and receive immediate, conversational responses, powered by an AI avatar. This avatar was trained on the nonprofit’s data, ensuring that the information provided is accurate, relevant, and aligned with the organization’s values.

What sets this system apart is its hybrid approach. It doesn’t stop at automation but bridges users to real human assistance when needed. For example, users requiring personalized support are routed to a social worker, who receives a summary of the interaction for context. This thoughtful design saves time for the nonprofit’s small team while ensuring that users feel supported and understood. For the people of this organization, this system allows them to be more available, scaling their engagement while hopefully preserving the personal connection that is at the core of their mission.

This example strikes me as an incredibly hopeful use of technology to enable more human-centered solutions. Without tools like this, the nonprofit might face significant challenges in providing timely support, leaving community members underserved and their team overburdened. Instead, embraced innovation and undertaken this limited experiment, allowing them to further consider how new approaches might further help them to deepen relationships and expand impact.

Considering the future we want to create

Change might be inevitable, but how we respond to it is entirely up to us. As leaders, I would argue that it’s our responsibility to engage with this cycle of change and choice—understanding, envisioning, and then building toward our best futures.

Generative AI is one of many examples of how rapid change brings both challenges and opportunities. The discomfort that comes with these moments is a chance to learn: about ourselves, our work, and the communities we serve. But it requires active participation.

What if instead of waiting for the dust to settle, we lean in to the uncertainty and take this moment to ask the critical questions that will define how we navigate the path forward? The specific questions will vary (and all the questions I raised in the above list still matter!) but as leaders, I would suggest we focus toward trying to answer the big questions relative to this or any other major change. For me, that’s questions like:

  • What’s really happening here?

  • Who will be affected?

  • How might this shape our shared future?

  • What decisions do we need to make in response?

These questions are not just about managing change– they’re about shaping it. By engaging with curiosity and intent, we can ensure that our decisions reflect the needs and values of the people we serve.

Getting started

So how do we find the right balance, starting to experiment while staying grounded in what matters most?

I’d suggest you start small. Consider a tool or approach that feels just outside your comfort zone. It might be using AI to brainstorm creative ideas, automating a single repetitive task, or streamlining one specific aspect of how your organization communicates. By all means, keep humans involved at every step: monitoring what goes into the process and what comes out, and then take the time to assess what’s working and what isn’t.

Critically, remember that you don’t have to do this alone. Bring your team, collaborators, or community into the process. Their perspectives can help you uncover opportunities you might have overlooked and spot potential issues early. Experimenting together not only enhances your learning but also ensures that the effort aligns with shared goals and values. By collaborating, you create a foundation of trust and transparency that strengthens your approach.

Last but not least, I’d encourage you to keep the human element at the heart of your experimentation. Generative AI holds incredible potential, but its true value lies in mindful application toward real problems, and in the service of real people. Technology is a tool, not the end goal. By focusing on impact and purpose, you’ll have the best opportunity to engage with a cycle of meaningful choice and change.

Listen to the full episode above, or subscribe to Storylinking on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast platform for more conversations that explore the power of storytelling to build community.

Additional Resources

Tom Lietz
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